On the very day that Israeli PM Bibi Netanyahu came to Washington, Monday, May 18, 2009, the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights issued this report about the 313 children killed by Israel during its Gaza offensive between 27 December 2008 and 18 January 2009. “Offensive” it was called. Israel called it a “war.” But who could not see that it was a massacre by a modern military force against a civilian population.
The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) publication, War Crimes Against Children, was released in response to the unprecedented number of children killed by Israeli forces in its latest operation; a total of 313 children under the age of eighteen. It contains numerous eye witness testimonies and brings to light Israel’s widespread targeting of unarmed civilians, including children, throughout the offensive.
`Operation Cast Lead’ was the biggest Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip in nearly 42 years of occupation. 1,414 Palestinians were killed, and PCHR investigations have found the overwhelming majority, 83 per cent, were civilians. One of the cases in the report is that of 18 month old Farah al-Helu, who was killed on 4 January. The al-Helu family had been told to evacuate their house in Zaytoun, eastern Gaza, but while they were attempting to flee, Israeli soldiers opened fire on them. Farah was shot in the stomach and bled to death two hours later.
War Crimes Against Children exposes the abject failure of Israeli authorities to uphold international humanitarian law, which provides protection for children in armed conflict and the lack of adequate precautions taken to distinguish between civilians and military targets. The report also details indiscriminate shelling of homes and schools where internally displaced people were sheltering, the psychological impact of the offensive, and the alarming scale of physical injuries inflicted on young people.
“We are calling for an independent full-scale investigation into all documented attacks on civilians during the offensive,” said Raji Sourani, director of PCHR. “Israel must be held fully accountable for the crimes it has perpetrated against Gaza’s civilian population, including alleged war crimes against children. We cannot allow the lives of these children to just be statistics in the history books of the Middle East.”
PCHR is calling on the international community to urge Israel to respect and uphold the human rights of Palestinians in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. “Urgent measures are needed in order to prevent further deaths,” added Mr Sourani.
The Centre is also recommending the urgent establishment of an independent committee to investigate the child killings. The committee must meet international standards of independence and transparency and publish its findings publicly.
One can read the English version of the report, ‘War Crimes against children’ by clicking HERE.
